Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 11/10/2008 6:52:56 PM PST by nuconvert
November 10, 2008
Michael Crichton, who died at 66 on November 4, election day, may not have been an outstanding stylist but he sure sold a few books in his time, mostly in the techno-thriller genre, such as Jurassic Park. He was a writer of ideas and also a medical doctor (Harvard Medical School), television producer, and film director.
Crichton’s enormous success did not prevent him from speaking out on politicized science, a raging issue of our time and too often overlooked. He took up the theme in State of Fear (2004), a footnoted novel about environmental intrigue on a global scale. The novel doesn’t quite deliver, but the appendix, “Why Politicized Science is Dangerous,” is worth attention.
One of Crichton’s examples is Trofim Lysenko, a Russian peasant who espoused a theory of “vernalization” in which fields could be fertilized without fertilizers and minerals. Favored by Stalin, Lysenko attacked genetics, which Communists branded a “bourgeois pseudoscience” in 1948.
“His theories dominated Russian biology,” Crichton wrote. “The result was famines that killed millions, and purges that sent hundreds of dissenting Soviet scientists to the gulags or the firing squads.”
There was no basis in science for Lysenko’s theories, but political support ensured that they dominated Soviet research for 30 years and endured into the 1960s. That is not so long ago.
Crichton’s other example is the eugenics movement, the idea that the inferior, usually those of darker hue, were breeding too fast and had become, in the words of one advocate, dangerous human pests. This drew the support of luminaries like H.G. Wells, Alexander Graham Bell, Leland Stanford, George Bernard Shaw, and was the subject of research at Yale and Harvard. It disturbed Crichton that eugenics also received support from the National Academy of Sciences and the American Medical Association.
“Now we are engaged in a great new theory,” Crichton wrote, “that once again has drawn the support of politicians, scientists, and celebrities around the world.” He is talking about global warming.
“Once again the theory is promoted by major foundations. Once again, the research is carried out at prestigious universities. Once again, legislation is passed and social programs are urged in its name. Once again, critics are few and harshly dealt with. Once again, the measures being urged have little basis in fact or science.”
Crichton’s warning is valid because of a phenomenon called watermelon environmentalism – green outside, red inside. While lacking in scientific certainty, global warming advocates dislike capitalism, economic growth, and enterprise in general. This outlook has little tolerance for dissenters and wants self-proclaimed experts to call the shots. Global warming mania, also the subject of his author’s message in State of Fear, prompted Crichton to pen this warning.
“The intermixing of science and politics is a bad combination, with a bad history. We must remember the history, and be certain that what we present to the world as knowledge is disinterested and honest.”
That is worth keeping in mind as much as anything Michael Crichton wrote in The Andromeda Strain or Jurassic Park. May he rest in peace.
Ping for GW Doomage and Nanny State lists.
What was it - 25 yrs. ago the coming “Ice Age” would have been here in 10 yrs. according to all those “in the know”?
“Global Warming” (name changed to “Climate Change” because blizzards, cold snaps and ice storms follow Albert Gore everywhere he goes) will disappear as an “issue” in a few years if the Lord tarries. The issue will have served its purpose.
Doubly interesting is that Crichton was pretty much a liberal and supported Gore in the 2000 election. He believed that the measures Gore was advocating (carbon credits, lifestyle changes, et al.) would come about of their own accord. He opposed Gore's crusade because he thought Gore was pushing pseudo-science. Crichton believed that the bogus foundations of climate change science would eventually become known and work against Gore's political agenda.
Crichton expressed all these views during his appearance on the Charlie Rose show. You can see it at this link:
Charlie Rose - An hour with Michael CrichtonThe discussion turns to global warming about 25 minutes into the show. The look on Rose's face is priceless--he's incredulous that a right-thinking Al Gore supporter could doubt the truth of global warming!!
watch later
Thanks for the link.
There was no basis in science for Lysenko’s theories, but political support ensured that they dominated Soviet research for 30 years and endured into the 1960s. That is not so long ago.
Kind of like the Church of Darwin.
R.I.P. Dr. Crichton.
We have lost a great thinker and a talented storyteller.
On 4 November, I was more upset by the news of Crichton’s death than by the news of Obama’s win.
Crichton was such a smart man. We have lost a lot with his death.
A little aside here: He never took his medical boards; therefore, he never practiced medicine.
Apparently, from what he wrote, his parents were the ones who pushed him into medical school. Every year he tried to quit, but the pressure was on. So when he graduated, he never bothered to take his boards.
awesome! I will use it often.
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